It's good, but you could argue that not an awful lot happens over a lot of pages. But, once I got over that, I really enjoyed the developing character of the main man, and began to care about his, and the other character's fate. It could certainly have done with more action, but I'm going to see the big picture with this one, and get searching for number two in the series.
Where it does score, is in the depth of research and knowlege the author displays. He really does know his (Roman) onions, that's clear, but he shows it in a subtle and convincing way.
Enjoyed it and can recommend it.